I really like Ken Salazar. Although he's a Democrat, I thought he was a great senator. He always looked out for Colorado's best interests and I always got a personal response from him when I wrote his office. I hated to see him resign to join the Obama Administration as our new Interior Secretary.
I just shook my head when I read his article in the Denver Post. This is not about bashing this good man; it's about bashing this economy-destroying pipe dream known as Green Energy.
He premises his argument on old anecdotal data. We've had some hellish fire seasons this decade, but the past few summers have been shorter and cooler:
We are also seeing the dangerous consequences of climate change: longer and hotter fire seasons, reduced snow packs, rising sea levels and declines of wildlife. Farmers, ranchers, municipalities, and other water users in Colorado and across the West are facing the possibility of a grim future in which there is less water to go around.
Next, he gives us liberal economics 101:
We will not fully unleash the potential of the clean energy economy unless Congress puts an upper limit on the emissions of heat-trapping gases that are damaging our environment. Doing so will level the playing field for new technologies by allowing the market to put a price on carbon, and will trigger massive investment in renewable energy projects across the country.Translation: Artificially jack up the price of carbon-based energy.
The cap and trade scheme will make coal, oil and natural gas prices go sky high, and businesses will pass the cost on to the consumer. This will make wind, solar and other inefficient forms of energy generation comparatively cheap, and therefore competitive in this rigged market.
The problem is that our global competitors are not as stupid as we are.
China and India will (smartly) continue using the cheapest energy possible to keep their manufacturing costs down. Meanwhile, liberal do-gooders in this country will double your light bill, put gas prices a scary European levels and kill US jobs in the process.
Our nation is blessed with an abundance of natural resources, and in a fit of earth-worshiping stupidity, the Democratic party would deny us their unfettered use. Even a good man like Ken Salazar can't square that one.
The Obama Administration must have insisted he check his Colorado common sense at the door.
Denver Post - Salazar
